1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to control pedals for a motor vehicle. In one of its aspects, the invention relates to a control pedal assembly for a motor vehicle. In another of its aspects, the invention relates to adjustable control pedals. In another of its aspects, the invention relates to an adjustable control pedal assembly for a motor vehicle.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a motor vehicle, the control interface between the driver and the motor vehicle mechanisms for acceleration, braking, and a clutch, takes the form of foot-operated pedals located underneath the instrument panel in front of the driver. These foot-operated pedals are commonly mounted on a lever arm that is pivotally mounted to a fixed point in the vehicle and arranged to exert a compression or tensile force on a linkage with the respective mechanism, whether it be acceleration, braking, or clutch.
A given motor vehicle, however, might be operated by multiple drivers, potentially having different physical dimensions, such as leg length or foot size. This necessitates some adjustability in the motor vehicle to accommodate drivers of different sizes. The most common adjustability built into the automobile has been incorporating adjustability into the driver""s seat, and to some extent to the steering wheel of the vehicle, to place the operator at the proper distance from the foot pedals and steering wheel. This has some limitations, however, as it is known to be undesirable to have an operator placed too close to the steering wheel, and there are practical limits to the adjustability of the driver""s seat and/or steering wheel while still providing proper spacing from the otherwise positionally fixed foot pedals.
Efforts have been made to provide some adjustability to the control pedals of the motor vehicle, but such efforts have had limited commercial success. Prior art attempts to develop adjustability have resulted in a bulky construction, and have generally failed to take into consideration the functional relationship between the accelerator, brake and clutch, particularly the relative positioning of the pedals throughout the adjustment range, and the expectations of the operator as to that relative positioning. A uniform and optimum relationship between the pedals will aid the operator in efficient operation of the motor vehicle.
It would be advantageous to develop an adjustable system of control pedals, or a control pedal assembly, for a motor vehicle, wherein the control pedal assembly provides a compact, unified construction, and maintains a uniform relationship between the pedals independent of the position of the assembly throughout its range of adjustability.
The invention relates to a control pedal assembly for a motor vehicle, including a first pedal and a second pedal, a cradle for pivotal connection to the motor vehicle about a cradle pivot axis, and a pedal positioning assembly, wherein the pedals are pivotally connected to the cradle about a pedal pivot axis, and wherein the cradle is pivotable about the cradle pivot axis by the pedal positioning assembly throughout a range of adjustability. In a preferred embodiment, the pedal positioning assembly comprises a motor-driven ball screw threadably connected with a drive nut pivotally mounted to the cradle.
The pedal positioning assembly can further include a second motor-driven ball screw threadably connected with a second drive nut pivotally mounted to one of the pedals. Both ball screws can be driven by a single motor, and can have the same or differing thread pitches.
In one aspect of the invention, one of the ball screws is carried by a rotation socket operably connected to a brake push rod.
In another aspect of the invention, the first and second ball screws are configured to simultaneously adjust the position of the cradle and the pedals, whereby the first pedal maintains a fixed spatial relationship to the second pedal throughout the range of adjustability. The assembly is further configured to maintain the pedals in a constant attitude to an operator of the vehicle throughout the range of adjustability.
In another aspect of the invention, wherein the ball screw rotates in a rotation hub pivotally connected to the brake push rod, the connection between the rotation hub and the brake push rod is restricted to move in an arc by an idler arm pivotally connected at a first end to the vehicle and at a second end to the connection between the rotation hub and brake push rod.
In another aspect of the invention, the control pedal assembly for a motor vehicle comprises a cradle, an electronic throttle control, and a brake pedal, wherein the brake pedal is pivotally mounted to the cradle about a brake pedal pivot axis, the electronic throttle control includes a throttle control pedal and is connected to a bracket pivotally mounted to the cradle about the brake pedal pivot axis, and the cradle is pivotally mounted to the motor vehicle about a cradle pivot axis, the control pedal assembly further comprising a pedal positioning assembly for adjustably positioning the pedals within a range of adjustability. The assembly further includes a guide pin configured to ride in a guide pin slot for maintaining the throttle control pedal at a constant attitude to the vehicle operator.
In another aspect of the invention, an adjustable control pedal for a motor vehicle comprises an arm-mounted pedal operably connected to a vehicle control apparatus and pivotally connected to a support structure that is pivotally connected to the motor vehicle, the support structure including a positioning assembly for positioning the control pedal at a constant attitude, relative to an operator of the vehicle, within a range of adjustability. The control apparatus can include a vehicle throttle control system or vehicle brake system.